Info Image

JCDecaux and Alcatel-Lucent Join Hands to Develop Connected Street Furniture for Smart Cities

Street Furniture by JCDecaux Image Credit:JCDecaux

Alcatel-Lucent and JCDecaux recently announced that both companies will jointly develop the Connected Street Furniture which enables in-city furniture such as park benches, lamposts and bus stands to be connected to the data network thus being able to transmit and receive real-time information and act as Wi-Fi hotspots or other medium of data connectivity to people and other mobile elements, including vehicles. 

According to JCDecaux, a leading outdoor advertising company and Alcatel-Lucent, the global communications giant,  the joint development initiative is bringing the two companies together for the first time, just as the the concept of smart cities is becoming central to the development and maintenance to today's cities globally.By deploying Alcatel-Lucent's smallcells solutions on street furniture developed by JCDecaux, both companies will be bringing connectivity to modern cities to cater for highly congested areas and fulfill the need for high-speed data across today's data users.

In their statement, both companies highlighted the need for in-city connectivity solutions to be efficient and simple in both design and implementation and at the same time, be able to maintain the aesthetics and functionalities of urban landscape and infrastructure.

"After various tests conducted in France and abroad, our collaboration with Alcatel-Lucent confirms our determination to provide urban areas with innovative and accessible services, building a true ecosystem for the greater benefit of mobile citizens. Rolling out a high-quality network has become one of the major strategic objectives in improving the appeal and competitiveness of cities, and we are pleased to work with the Alcatel-Lucent teams to increase our R&D efforts to design connected street furniture that is both functional and aesthetic. Through these efforts, we will showcase French expertise in building a Smart City." 

-           Jean-Charles Decaux, Chairman of the Executive Board and co-CEO of JCDecaux  

As leaders and innovators in our respective industries this pairing allows us to work together to build truly ultra broadband cities prepared to meet the ever growing communications demands of our mobile society. As companies that work daily within local communities around the world, we deeply appreciate the benefits that a connected society can bring -- forever changing the way we are able to interact with each other. However we also want to make sure we do this in a way that does not clutter or overly put a burden on our already stretched city resources. This requires that our two companies work together to deliver innovative and eloquent design solutions that boost our existing information infrastructure while keeping our urban landscapes uncluttered and making smart use of existing power resources." 

-           Michel Combes, Chief Executive Officer of Alcatel-Lucent  

Author

Ray is a news editor at The Fast Mode, bringing with him more than 10 years of experience in the wireless industry.

For tips and feedback, email Ray at ray.sharma(at)thefastmode.com, or reach him on LinkedIn @raysharma10, Facebook @1RaySharma

PREVIOUS POST

Belgacom Taps Cisco Packet Core to Offer Innovative Mobile Internet Services

NEXT POST

ARRIS Powers Digital Cable TV & Triple-Play Provider JAINHITS